The clearest explanation of the Fermi paradox evah.
“Faith based initiative.” Indeed.
“…burn and sink into the swamp.” Nice MP allusion…
It’s not much of a cheese shop, now is it?
So painful, so true…
This is almost a George Lucas edited version of Space Policy. It has fun jabs and a makes some key points; but it misses the story.
One of many things I didn’t like, not once in the “NASA needs more money to build a rocket” routine was “SpaceX did it for less”. That omission makes me suspect our host didn’t make this.
I’m pretty sure there was no intent to describe the total story in a single short robot theater. It was just a commentary on the latest congressional shenanigans.
I have a modest proposal.
The congressmen are pressing for the rocket program to get jobs to their district, which in turn would mean votes for them, which will get them re-elected and rich and powerful. Right?
So why not skip the middleman, and give money directly to the congressmen? Buy them an island or something where they can be king, rich and important. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be a lot cheaper than any NASA program. More efficient, for sure!
I think it’s a plot – the space aliens are trying to keep us grounded.
You’ve got to wonder if any are serious about “waste, fraud and abuse.”
“Rocket to nowhere” should be the meme.
Well, people are always calling their Congress representative if they live in a “space state”.. why not get all the people who live in states with no vested interest in the space program to call their Congress rep and demand the waste in NASA be cut? So long as they’re clear and say that they don’t think *everything* in NASA is waste (almost everything certainly) and maybe even mention the “rocket to nowhere” as a good example of waste… it’d be great to see the rep from NY or IL or any of the other non-space states stand up and demand an explanation for the spending. Or better yet, a purpose for NASA all together.
it’d be great to see the rep from NY or IL or any of the other non-space states stand up and demand an explanation for the spending.
A former Senator from IL already did about 4 years ago.
Ditto Ken. That was a fantastic Fermi paradox joke. I’m going to steal it.
>>I have a modest proposal.
>>The congressmen are pressing for the rocket program
I have an even more modest, less radical proposal. Decouple the congressional rocket program from the space program entirely. Let them build a bottle rocket after another if they so desire, it doesn’t even have to fly. Just make it a separate budget line in federal budget, and distance it far from anything space related.
It seems obvious that NASA and Congress want a Really Big Rocket in the worst way, and that’s exactly how they’re going about getting one.
I like these bits, but over five minutes for an Internet short? Yikes. Brevity is the soul of wit.
NASA IS A WASTE. NOTHING GOOD EVER COME OUT OF THE SPACE PROGRAM. WE DON’T NEED THE EXPERIMENTS, FINDINGS, DEVELOPMENTS OR ANYTHING ELSE THAT COMES OUT OF THE SPACE PROGRAM. THE SOVIET UNION AND CHINA SHOULD BE LEFT TO SPACE EXPLORATION. THE US NEEDS TO SPEND THAT MONEY GOING TO NASA ON GREEN JOBS, WELFARE, SENDING PEOPLE TO COLLEGE, PROVIDING MEDICAL CARE TO PEOPLE, ON UNIONS, ON BAILOUTS, ON SOLAR ENERGY, AND SO ON.
“Rocket to Nowhere”
The clearest explanation of the Fermi paradox evah.
“Faith based initiative.” Indeed.
“…burn and sink into the swamp.” Nice MP allusion…
It’s not much of a cheese shop, now is it?
So painful, so true…
This is almost a George Lucas edited version of Space Policy. It has fun jabs and a makes some key points; but it misses the story.
One of many things I didn’t like, not once in the “NASA needs more money to build a rocket” routine was “SpaceX did it for less”. That omission makes me suspect our host didn’t make this.
I’m pretty sure there was no intent to describe the total story in a single short robot theater. It was just a commentary on the latest congressional shenanigans.
I have a modest proposal.
The congressmen are pressing for the rocket program to get jobs to their district, which in turn would mean votes for them, which will get them re-elected and rich and powerful. Right?
So why not skip the middleman, and give money directly to the congressmen? Buy them an island or something where they can be king, rich and important. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be a lot cheaper than any NASA program. More efficient, for sure!
I think it’s a plot – the space aliens are trying to keep us grounded.
You’ve got to wonder if any are serious about “waste, fraud and abuse.”
“Rocket to nowhere” should be the meme.
Well, people are always calling their Congress representative if they live in a “space state”.. why not get all the people who live in states with no vested interest in the space program to call their Congress rep and demand the waste in NASA be cut? So long as they’re clear and say that they don’t think *everything* in NASA is waste (almost everything certainly) and maybe even mention the “rocket to nowhere” as a good example of waste… it’d be great to see the rep from NY or IL or any of the other non-space states stand up and demand an explanation for the spending. Or better yet, a purpose for NASA all together.
it’d be great to see the rep from NY or IL or any of the other non-space states stand up and demand an explanation for the spending.
A former Senator from IL already did about 4 years ago.
Ditto Ken. That was a fantastic Fermi paradox joke. I’m going to steal it.
>>I have a modest proposal.
>>The congressmen are pressing for the rocket program
I have an even more modest, less radical proposal. Decouple the congressional rocket program from the space program entirely. Let them build a bottle rocket after another if they so desire, it doesn’t even have to fly. Just make it a separate budget line in federal budget, and distance it far from anything space related.
It seems obvious that NASA and Congress want a Really Big Rocket in the worst way, and that’s exactly how they’re going about getting one.
I like these bits, but over five minutes for an Internet short? Yikes. Brevity is the soul of wit.
I see some potential here.
http://pajamasmedia.com/vodkapundit/2011/01/19/the-climate-of-hate/
Isn’t this how the Baltimore Gun Club got started?
I guess, as always, America’s Finest News Source is ahead of the curve with
http://www.theonion.com/articles/nasa-announces-plan-to-launch-700-million-into-spa,1950/
NASA IS A WASTE. NOTHING GOOD EVER COME OUT OF THE SPACE PROGRAM. WE DON’T NEED THE EXPERIMENTS, FINDINGS, DEVELOPMENTS OR ANYTHING ELSE THAT COMES OUT OF THE SPACE PROGRAM. THE SOVIET UNION AND CHINA SHOULD BE LEFT TO SPACE EXPLORATION. THE US NEEDS TO SPEND THAT MONEY GOING TO NASA ON GREEN JOBS, WELFARE, SENDING PEOPLE TO COLLEGE, PROVIDING MEDICAL CARE TO PEOPLE, ON UNIONS, ON BAILOUTS, ON SOLAR ENERGY, AND SO ON.